I managed to get my bicycle put back together today. It was a fairly greasy experience but not too bad, except that once it was basically back to normal I discovered that one of the bolts for the front brake had been stripped, making it useless. And the gears were shifting pretty rough, leaving it clicking a lot. So I asked at the hostel about a bike shop, they gave me some very general directions and I biked off to find it. Almost all of the shops on that street were closed because it was Saturday afternoon; but (very) fortunately the bike shop was open and there was a mechanic on hand. Otherwise I would have been stuck waiting around until Monday. The part probably needed to be replaced (not just the bolt but the whole mechanism), which they most likely didn't have. But he managed to jerry-rig it in a way that works fine and seems pretty reliable. And then there are always the back brakes. Also he fiddled with the gears and got them working properly.
So with that out of the way, I then headed for a travel office to inquire about ferries, since I'd heard that most of them were booked getting out to the islands. There was one seat left on a boat to the island of Anafi, leaving late Sunday night and arriving Monday morning, so I got that one. Anafi sounds pretty sweet, one of those places that's just as nice as other much more popular places, but somehow gets overlooked. I'm not exactly sure what sort of services there will be there, apparently there isn't a bank but there are small villages with hotels, restaurants, etc. And I guess you can camp near some of the beaches without any hassle and without worrying about your stuff, since there are so few people. The bike might not be especially handy there, since apparently it's mostly walking paths to get around, but that's fine. It sounds like there's some good exploring with secluded beaches, a monastery and ruins. I can't wait to take a swim in the Mediterranean. (Click on the subject line above for a link to more info about Anafi.)
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